Action Needed: Health and Human Services Comments

We need your help now to restore religious liberty and protect conscience!

Despite our best efforts, the Obama Administration continues to attack our religious liberties by forcing Americans to pay for coverage of abortion-inducing drugs, regardless of their moral objections.When Americans are forced to deny their deeply held religious convictions, it is tyranny.

In its most recent rules regarding the “preventive services” mandate, the Administration maintains the same restrictive exemptions.Under the current proposal, virtually all Americans who enroll in a health care plan will ultimately be required to have “contraceptive coverage” for themselves and their dependents, whether they want it or not.

This Administration should not be allowed to pick and choose which Americans may exercise their faith and when and where they are allowed to exercise it.Providing an exemption only to houses of worship implies that only the activities of houses of worship are worthy of religious freedom. However, religion is not limited to worship alone.And, the freedom of religion should not be limited to the freedom of worship.All Americans have First Amendment rights that need to be protected.

Take Action Now!The religious exemption proposed is a radical departure from past exemptions and must be expanded to protect the religious freedom problems caused by the mandate.Please click here to urge the Department of Health and Human Service to rescind the mandate so that any American with a religious or moral conviction is not forced to violate it.And please feel free to cut and paste the language below in your response.

Department of Health and Human Services

Room 445-G

Hubert Humphrey Building

200 Independence Avenue, S.W.

Washington, D.C. 20201

Re: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Preventive Services

File Code CMS-9968-P

Dear Sir or Madam,

Please rescind the “contraceptive mandate,” because it will force most Americans to subsidize contraceptives, including drugs like Plan B and Ella, which induce abortions, regardless of their moral or religious objections.

Exempting only places of worship is a radical departure from current conscience protections. I believe a full exemption should be offered to any American who has moral and religious objections to subsidizing contraceptives, including abortion-inducing drugs. Such drugs are often covered already and widely available.

I am opposed to the contraception mandate, and I believe the conscience of religious people who oppose these drugs should be protected, not violated. If the mandate with this proposed scheme does not violate religious freedom, then churches should not be exempted. If churches deserve an exemption, then that same exemption should apply to all Americans.

I strongly oppose the proposed rule and request HHS to rescind the mandate or provide an exemption that will protect all individuals with moral or religious objections.